Corporate Governance

Capital Calls: Reliance Industries, Mediobanca

29 Sep 2021

Concise views on global finance: The Indian giant is trying to stave off an investor rebellion against its board appointment; top shareholder Leonardo Del Vecchio is proposing a governance shakeup at the Italian bank.

Evergrande sprawl is complicating credit woes

14 Sep 2021

The desperate developer is struggling to sell stakes in auto and property management units, hurt by close ties to their parent. Like many tycoons, boss Hui Ka Yan revelled in spinning off subsidiaries without ceding control. The downside of such entanglement is becoming clear.

Capital Calls: Vaccine mandates, U.S. debt ceiling

10 Sep 2021

Concise views on global finance: New White House requirements for Covid-19 injections will provide cover for businesses while Washington lawmakers arguing about borrowing limits make themselves look foolish.

China’s Ke would drag heavy baggage to Hong Kong

9 Sep 2021

The New York-traded online property broker may add another stock listing. Ke is a prime target in Beijing's tech and real estate crackdown, and its founder’s death left a governance mess. Even with shares 70% off their peak, there's plenty to dissuade investors from moving in.

Capital Calls: AMC, German pet retailer

8 Sep 2021

Concise views on global finance: The movie theater chain enjoyed bumper Labor Day attendance; a trio of private equity suitors are circling Zooplus.

SoftBank buyback hopes could hit crossed lines

8 Sep 2021

Shares in Masayoshi Son’s conglomerate jumped some 20% after it swapped some US T-Mobile shares for a stake in the latter’s parent, Deutsche Telekom. It also bagged $2 bln-plus in cash. Investors are dialing up a big stock repurchase but may have the wrong number in mind.

Capital Calls: New York City is on climate notice

2 Sep 2021

Concise views on global finance: Cities with a higher number of wealthier residents will be able to combat climate related events.

Capital Calls: Geely’s employee stock awards

1 Sep 2021

Concise views on global finance: The Chinese automaker shifts the idea of granting workers share options into gear.

Viewsroom: China’s push for common prosperity

26 Aug 2021

Markets have been hit by a series of crackdowns in private tutoring, data security and more. Underlying this is Beijing’s effort to limit rich excesses and boost middle-class wealth, which could curb the performance of the country’s biggest and best-known private companies.

Beijing and ByteDance are killing a video-app star

24 Aug 2021

Kuaishou has shed $190 bln from a peak struck shortly after its February listing. Its adjusted net loss is forecast to hit $3 bln this year as it struggles with regulators and TikTok’s owner. Barring a turnaround, it may prove to be China tech's shortest-lived flash in the pan.

Viewsroom: China’s Afghanistan question

19 Aug 2021

Beijing was able to expand its influence in central Asia while America and its allies held back the Taliban. The Islamic fundamentalists’ return to power presents China with new challenges – and opportunities. Plus: CEO Mike Henry shakes up mining giant BHP.

Huarong rescue clarifies moral hazard only so much

19 Aug 2021

The Finance Ministry-backed bad bank, which expects a big loss for 2020, unveiled plans to restructure with state-owned CITIC. That’s good news for traders who bought $20 bln of bonds on the cheap. For investors in other indebted Chinese companies, any read-through remains fuzzy.

BHP’s Brexit should fare better than Unilever’s

18 Aug 2021

The $170 bln miner’s decision to collapse its dual-listed structure will require UK investors to swap their shares for foreign ones. When the Anglo-Dutch consumer group tried that in 2018, investors kicked up a fuss. The value proposition of BHP’s gambit looks more enticing.

Alibaba’s #MeToo scandal is warning for China tech

9 Aug 2021

Sexual assault allegations have embroiled the $534 bln e-commerce firm, already under scrutiny for antitrust and other issues. Alibaba prizes strong internal controls and hires more female executives than domestic peers. The industry’s toxic culture is overdue a reckoning.

Danone board gets much-needed upgrade in a Schnepp

29 Jul 2021

The $46 bln dairy group’s chairman will replace nearly all its directors in two years, drawing a line under years of misses, crummy governance and underperformance. Adding more consumer-goods expertise and international heft should help narrow Danone’s chunky discount to peers.

Chinese duty-free giant’s share sale is well timed

13 Jul 2021

China Tourism’s Hong Kong secondary listing plan spotlights the $90 bln company’s unique strengths. State ties help, as do favourable policies in tropical getaway Hainan. Hefty proceeds will give it a war chest to expand overseas and challenge rivals like Switzerland’s Dufry.

Review: The dark side of stakeholder capitalism

9 Jul 2021

Arif Naqvi promised to make money while doing good in emerging markets. But he treated his Abraaj private equity group’s cash as his own, pocketing $780 mln. “The Key Man” tells how he hoodwinked the likes of Bill Gates and TPG. It’s an overdue reality check for impact investing.

Capital Calls: U.S. jobs, Fitness IPO

7 Jul 2021

Concise views on global finance: U.S. employment vacancies tip scales towards workers; Mark Wahlberg-backed F45’s IPO values it at twice what an attempted SPAC deal did last year, justifiably.

Green goals will milk more Kiwi-like finance fixes

6 Jul 2021

New Zealand needs 13% fewer cows to help hit emissions targets. That lends urgency to dairy giant Fonterra’s plan to restructure its cooperative as farms grapple with environmental crises. Suppliers and their balance sheets will be a key battle front in the war on climate change.

Russian miner is gold standard in governance chaos

1 Jul 2021

London-listed Petropavlovsk kept CEO Denis Alexandrov even after shareholders blocked his appointment to the board. It follows extended battles between investors that pummelled the $1 bln group’s shares despite a buoyant yellow metal. The latest twist makes a recovery doubtful.